Ladies Who Lunch: Toni Francesc Spring 2013!

Toni Francesc, one of my favorite designers, has been missing from New York Fashion Week for the past two seasons.  But, that doesn’t mean that he has been idle!  Au contraire!  Toni Francesc has been busy creating and showing his beautiful collections in his native Barcelona!  For Spring 2013, Toni Francesc presented his collection at the Palau de Pedralbes, the former city residence of the Spanish Royal Family.

One of the things that I love about Toni Francesc is that he always builds his collections around a bold artistic theme, consistently producing dramatic collections each season. The theme for Spring 2013 was “Gypsum”.  Inspired by crystals and stones, the collection connects functional design with a woman’s sensuality.  Using a constructive approach with the fabrics in each piece, he tries to capture the look of plaster in its mineral state.  Clean lines and geometric shapes marked this collection that merges with the body to show balance, fluidity and femininity.

Mr. Francesc’s color palette incorporated into the collection neutrals like selenite and alabaster mixed with shades of green, blue and orange.  He also played with transparency, opaque and dusty colors, and to get the architectural feeling colors that have a feeling of plaster and cement.  

For fabrics, the collection relies on the fluidity of silk and tencel as well as cottons, wool, linen and organza to achieve the architectural qualities in the pieces.  All of these elements come together to create a look that is strong and balanced, while also being sensual and fragile.

While Toni Francesc may be missed during Fashion Week, you can now shop his line at the Trinity Place Store in New York at 61 Broadway!    They will also carry his Veneno en la Piel by Toni Francesc line that offers ceremony, party and cocktail dresses with a young, fresh, feminine and seductive style!!  The new department store just opened in October and when completed will have men’s, women’s and children’s clothing and accessories from European and Australian designers! So if you are a New Yorker or just in for a visit, take a trip to the store to see Toni Francesc’s Collections in person!

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Ladies Who Lunch: SKINGRAFT Fall 2012!

Launched in 2005, SKINGRAFT started out as an experiment in performance art inspired fashion and has grown to become a full ready to wear collection for both men and women.

SKINGRAFT'S designer, Jonny Cota, has managed to keep the early inspiration for the company alive, creating a unique collection of wearable art pieces as well as ornate one-of a kind pieces for the runway and stage.

Capturing the attention of hip hop artists from Niki Minaj to Mary J. Blige, the quintessentially LA design house SKINGRAFT delivers on drama!

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Ladies Who Lunch: Octavio Carlin Fall 2012!

Born in Mexico City, Octavio Carlin started his career as a child actor before moving to Los Angeles to pursue a career in Fashion Design.

The Golden Age of Hollywood serves as Octavio Carlin’s greatest inspiration and he tries to capture the glamour and elegance that the period evokes.  His designs are also influenced by a passion for architecture and the stream-lined art deco style.

Staying true to his Hollywood inspiration, Octavio Carlin showed a Fall 2012 Collection that captured the glory days of that era.  Concentrating on a theme based on art deco design and ancient Egypt, the sleek collection emphasized clean lines for a seductive silhouette.  The color palette concentrated on gold, black and white with punches of electric blue and red.  A leopard print also made the line in the form of a strapless formfitting gown.

Fittingly, Octavio Carlin lives in Hollywood, where he is an active member of the LA Conservancy, working to preserve old Hollywood and film restoration.

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Ladies Who Lunch: L'une Collection Fall 2012!

Fellow Parsons School of Design graduate Anh Volcek takes her diverse and unusual background and channels it into her line L’une Collection.  L’une being French for “one”, Anh Volcek’s L’une Collection is all about becoming “one” with yourself.

Growing up in Quebec City & Montreal, Anh Volcek started her design career working for couture houses in Paris such as Lapidus and in New York for companies like Calvin Klein.  In 2009, she started her L’une Collection, basing it in La Jolla, California.

Combining European aesthetics with an American sensibility, Anh Volcek creates L’une Collection with an eye on her passion for newness and technology.

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Ladies Who Lunch; Furne One - Amato Couture Fall 2012!

Tonight, Furne One will present his Spring 2013 Collection at Style Fashion Week LA!  But before we move on to Spring, let’s take a look at his Amato Couture presentation for Fall 2012!

Hailing from the Phillipines, Furne One is a Dubai based designer who is becoming more and more well know internationally.  Stars like Katy Perry, Jennifer Lopez, Nicki Minaj, and Shakira have worn his elaborate designs both on stage and on the red carpet giving this designer a visibility other designers would die for.

For Fall 2012, Furne One pulled out all of the stops for a runway show that proved that not only is he a designer of gorgeous highly embellished gowns, but that he is also a master of imagination and a consummate showman.

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Ladies Who Lunch: Mila Hermanovski Fall 2012!

Coming in 3rd place in Project Runway’s 7th season, Los Angeles based Mila Hermanovski has become a familiar name to the American public.  The Dallas native received her BFA from the Rhode Island School of Design and began her career in NY as an assistant at Calvin Klein.

Mila Hermanovski also had a passion for designing costumes, which led to a move to Los Angeles where she has worked on many important film and television projects.

But competing on Project Runway brought her back to her design roots and she launched her own line MILA, a collection that emphasizes her graphic modern sensibility, combining clean lines with luxe textiles.

For MILA Fall 2012, Mila Hermanovski took her inspiration from artists Josef Albers, John McLaughlin and Bridget Riley.  The influence was evident in the play on geometric shapes and especially with a color palette that concentrated on the gray scale with the sole shot of color being a beautiful chartreuse that worked well with the grays!

Mila Hermanovski delivered a solid MILA Fall 2012 collection that will definitely speak to the contemporary woman!  Check it out in stores now!

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Ladies Who Lunch: Ina Soltani Fall 2012!

Born and raised in Sarajevo, the culture of Ina Soltani’s homeland is an obvious influence upon her work.  However, Ina Soltani’s designs are as much inspired by her adopted home of Los Angeles.

This was particularly true in her Ina Soltani Fall 2012 Collection, a collection that would definitely appeal to those with an LA Rockstar image.  Ina Soltani’s sometimes hard edged designs strike a balance between being Bold and sexy, while still maintaing a feminine appeal.

We spoke to Ina Soltani after her Fall 2012 show at Style Fashion Week LA to find out more about what drove her edgy collection that is a perfect example of Los Angeles Style.

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Ladies Who Lunch: XCVI Fall 2012!

XCVI, a company native to Los Angeles, is named for the roman numerals for 1996, the year that the first season of the collection was introduced in a storefront on Melrose Avenue.  Although the company has been thriving and growing over the last 16 years, this is the first season that I became aware of the line and honestly have to say that I was very impressed.

Gita Zeltzer founded XCVI to use fashion as her means of artistic expression, drawing upon the multi layered cultural elements of Los Angeles to create a contemporary collection that is quintessentially California, yet speaks to customers around the globe.

Partnering with designer Lilia Gorodnitski, who shared the same vision, the two have worked together to create a line of modern, wearable clothing that has as much emphasis on style as it does on comfort.

For XCVI’s Fall 2012 collection, Lilia was inspired by Northern European Forests, which resulted in gorgeous layering of separates to create a feeling of casual chic with elements that invoke the romance of the Northern European culture.  Taking the colors from her inspiration, Lilia infused the collection with earthy forest tones of browns and greens and highlighted them with shades of reds, aquas, violets and oranges.

They set the tone for the collection with musical accompaniment by vilolinist Spags, who’s virtuosity was a perfect match for the Fall 2012 Collection.

You owe it to yourself to check out XCVI and to fall in love with their unique and beautiful line!

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